Despite investigation, political taint remains

The result of the federal investigation of the awarding of subcontract work to a political ally of Mayor Hannemann did not say there was no hanky panky. All it said was that none of the federal procurement laws were broken (Star-Bulletin, Aug. 25).

Anyone who pays attention to the political scene in Honolulu can clearly see the political connection even if it wasn't visible from Washington, D.C.

Bill Nelson
Haleiwa

Case doesn't vote with little guy in mind

In an advertisement Senate candidate Ed Case mailed out, he claims that Senator Akaka is for the few, and that he is for all.

Then how does Case account for his vote against an appropriations bill (HR 5386 ) for the Department of the Interior, Environment and related agencies and which would help most Americans?

Or can Case reveal why he voted for bill (HR 5638) that reduces estate taxes that benefit the rich, or his vote against HR 30, an amendment that would hamper the wealthy from profiting by using eminent domain to acquire other citizen's homes?

Over 50 congressmen have been reported under investigation for bribery so Congress went through the motions, putting up a bill (HR 4975) encouraging House members to take ethics training and require all House employees to take ethics training. Case voted against the bill.

The Democratic Party is a team of citizens promoting what is best for working people, the disabled and poor, not the wealthy who have the ability to take care of themselves. Case doesn't get it.

Smoky Guerrero
Mililani

Akaka has difficulty communicating ideas

Sen. Dan Akaka appears to have trouble completing his sentences even in a practiced and polished campaign commercial. Why should Hawaii's voters vote for someone who would have a problem collecting and expressing his thoughts on a major issue on the U.S. Senate floor?

We should not vote for someone only because of their past sacrifice for our country in war. We thank them and appreciate their sacrifice as we do the war fighters of today and in any other conflicts in our past. We need someone who is coherent and can explain their stand on issues in detail not broad statements.

Ray Line
Hilo, Hawaii

Where are the Muslim peacemakers?

Aren't there any individuals, groups, or countries in the Muslim world who could get the Shiites and Sunnis to the bargaining table and hammer out their differences, so that they could begin the process of re-building their country? The killings and carnage only make it harder for the average Iraqi to have any semblance of an ordinary life of seeking employment, providing for the family, and having the daily bread to live.

Iraq needs intermediaries who could help the people to put down their weapons and grab the pick and shovel and start the work of the "new" Iraq!

Roy E. Shigemura
Honolulu

P-2 zoning should mean no development, period

The city zoned the area from Ka Iwi Point to Sandy Beach P-2 to protect the land from hotel/residential development. The city should adhere to the designation that took more than 30 years to achieve. Preservation land should remain just that.

At the Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board meeting in June, Westwood Development Group, also known as Moanalua Properties, presented a plan to build 180 cabins on the hillside near the state park. This resort-like development is not appropriate for preservation land. Vacation cabins were intended to be an ancillary use to recreation. The developer in this case is proposing "vacation cabins" (actually houses) and then planning to add recreational facilities to justify them. This subverts the intent of the ordinance, truly the tail waging the dog!

It also sets a terrible precedent. How many mountainsides on Oahu could be converted to resorts if this use of P-2 land is allowed? If the developer's interpretation of the P-2 designation is deemed to be correct, then the ordinance needs immediate change to clarify that the intent of P-2 zoning is preservation.

A change to the section of the Land Use Ordinance pertaining to P-2 must be an urgent priority to ensure that there are no more similar applications. True stewards of the land would take immediate appropriate steps to preserve the vistas from the mountains to the sea.

The League of Women Voters of Honolulu urges rejection of all applications for development on Queen's Rise overlooking Ka Iwi State Park

Piilani Kaopuiki
President, League of Women Voters of Honolulu

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